Your comprehensive guide to SQL Server

Microsoft Structured Query Language (SQL) Server is an innovative software technology that has revolutionized how data is handled—data that must be easily accessible to a specific organization, but completely inaccessible to unauthorized users.

365体育足球There are many different versions of SQL Server, each catering to a different workload or set of demands. Some are scaled down and free while others are tailored to higher levels of application support and scalability. For over 20 years, SQL Server worked exclusively on Windows. However, it has recently become available to run on Linux as well.

Applications for SQL Server

365体育足球Since the system is designed and built to manage and store information, it’s useful for almost all organizations by default, but perhaps the most in-demand applications are for those in the business industry. This is because SQL Server supports intelligence operations, analytics operations and transaction processing.

SQL Server glossary of terms

Here is a brief listing of some commonly used SQL Server terms and their definitions.

• BLOB: Stands for Binary Large Object and is a piece of binary data that has an exceptionally large size. Examples include images, audio or multimedia tracks that are stored as digital data. It can also be any variable or table column that is large enough to hold such values.

• Compression: 365体育足球A technique that helps reduce the size of a database to improve performance. It is best suited to log tables, audit tables, fact tables and reporting.

• Fabric configuration: Creating an environment that is conducive to high productivity and maximum efficiency.

• Index: A database object that provides fast access to data in the rows of a table, based on key values in a relational database.

• Partitioning: The process of replacing a table with multiple smaller tables. This is done to positively affect the environment and most of its processes.

• T-SQL:365体育足球 Stands for Transact-SQL and is the language containing the commands used to administer instances of SQL Server, to create and manage all objects in an instance of SQL Server, and to insert, retrieve, modify and delete all data in SQL Server tables.

• Virtualization:365体育足球 Technology that lets you consolidate workloads from multiple servers onto a single server. This drives up the hardware utilization rate and increases the ROI for your servers.

SQL Server best practices

Knowing and utilizing SQL Server best practices365体育足球 can provide much guidance for those who want to optimize their host clustering, virtual machine configuring, virtual deployments and SQL Server resiliency.

365体育足球• Advantages of key platform features to deliver the highest levels of execution and accessibility

How to get the most from Your SQL Server

365体育足球Sometimes, you may be dealing with a vastly underpowered server. This causes a lot of frustration, but there are a few things you can do to mitigate the issues.

Tuning the indexes

With such a huge database that grows every month, indexes, partitioning and compression are keys to decreasing the time of a batch process.

Here are a few other tips for improving performance:

• With just a handful of index changes you can eliminate clustered index scan and key lookups.

• The user-defined function feature is often the source of hidden performance problems.

365体育足球• Use to create and manage traces and analyze and replay trace results.

• Updates and deletes must be done cautiously to avoid locking up the server.

Upgrading SQL Server, OS, and applications

If you’re experiencing frequent timeouts, delays and other nonsense, there’s a chance your version of SQL Server could use an update. By simply upgrading the SQL Server (and sometimes the OS and its applications) you can make a dramatic improvement in performance.

Virtualization

To make the best use of server hardware investments, you should consolidate workloads as separate virtual machines. This allows you to gain greater scalability and build reliable infrastructure for mission-critical workloads.

Fabric configuration considerations

365体育足球Here are three considerations for properly building scalable, high-performance virtualized infrastructures.

2. Compute: There should be a large amount of processing and memory power available to handle demanding, mission-critical and high-performance workloads.

3. Storage: 365体育足球It should be designed to provide enhanced reliability, availability and performance for widely distributed database application. Improper configuration can lead to poor performance and operation.

4 .Networking: Network performance and availability is important for reducing networking complexity while simplifying management tasks.

While proper planning is required before virtualization, the results of optimal performance and ease of management are well worth the initial effort.

Must-know SQL Server features

Knowing the basics only gets you so far. If you’re ready to go beyond the basics and explore additional must-know features and capabilities of SQL, read on.

Execute a query over a sliding window of data

365体育足球1. It focuses, simplifies and customizes the perception each user has of the database.

365体育足球2. It provides a backward compatible interface which emulates a table whose schema has changed.

365体育足球3. It acts as a security mechanism by allowing users to access data without granting permissions to directly access the underlying base tables.

Integrate a highly-scalable BLOB storage solution

Integrating document BLOB storage with SQL Server is an innovative feature that works seamlessly with a relational SQL Server database to solve the dilemma of storing BLOBs (Binary Large Objects) within the relational database. This is accomplished with FILESTREAM.

365体育足球Before FILESTREAM, SQL Server was forced to put BLOBs into the standard database filegroups. Because BLOBs don’t naturally fit within this structure, they are pushed into off-row storage. This bloats the structured filegroups and kills performance.

365体育足球Now, with FILESTREAM, SQS Server stores BLOB content as files in the file system where they belong.

Expose your data in more effective ways

When you add Elasticsearch365体育足球 as a secondary index to your primary SQL Server data store, you are able to add new features that will uncover your collected data in new and unexpected ways.

New features you can add include:

• “More like this” searching

• Scoring of search results

365体育足球• Fast aggregations and statistics

• Geo distance filtering

365体育足球• Syncs data across indexes

• Analyzers

365体育足球• Templates

• And more

Because of these extremely useful features, Elasticsearch is a free add-on well worth exploring.

The need for certified professionals

365体育足球The demand for certified SQL Server professionals has been (and always will be) high since SQL Server must be monitored at all times to ensure it’s working properly and efficiently. When the system isn’t functioning well, it leads to too much downtime and a loss of revenue.

365体育足球A qualified SQL Server professional brings much value to an organization with:

365体育足球• Higher overall productivity

365体育足球• Better risk mitigation

• Sustainable hiring

• Increased business agility

365体育足球• A huge saving of both time and money

How is all this accomplished? A certified professional tends to be more engaged in their work, enjoys mentoring other employees, has the knowledge to identify, diagnose and respond to problems in a timely manner and will help to develop features and applications that bring about improvement.

SQL Server certification

There are several reasons you may want to become SQL Server certified. The curriculum is set to internationally recognized standards, ensuring that the knowledge gained is immediately applicable and useful. Certification also acts as proof of the skills, knowledge and experience that happens to be in such high demand, making certified professionals very valuable to employers.

If you have yet to get certified for any version of SQL Server, it’s time to do it. There are a variety of exams, each building on top of each other to help you progress through the ranks of:

More about SQL courses

Regardless of which version of SQL Server you’re working with, learning more about your version is critical to becoming the go-to person in your IT world. Pluralsight365体育足球 has you covered. With a vast array of articles, online instructor-led courses and hands-on skill development opportunities, you’ll get the answers you need to work more efficiently and pass your SQL Server certification.

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